Nova Reading Order

There are a lot of Marvel characters I wouldn’t love as much without the incredible mid to late 2000’s Marvel Cosmic era of comics (see: Galaxy, Guardians of the), perhaps none more so than Richard Rider, aka Nova.

Nova rockets his way into Annihilation as the central protagonist of the massive universe-spanning conflict, growing from erstwhile teen hero and leader of the New Warriors to bonafide A-list superhero.

In many ways, the best modern Nova comics starring Richard Rider coincide with Comic Book Herald’s complete Marvel Cosmic guide. I’d recommend you check out the full cosmic ride, simply because it’s great, but if you want pure uncut Nova, you’ll find that fast track guide below.

You’ll also find Nova’s origins, team-up appearances with the New Warriors, and of course Marvel NOW’s all-new Nova, Sam Alexander.

Nova Comics Reading Order

Nova (Richard Rider) Origins

Nova launches as a late 70’s bronze age teen hero, very much in the tradition of Peter Parker, Spider-Man. The Nova Classic volumes will give you Richard Rider’s origins as well as his connection to the Marvel Universe at large, particularly in the pages of Fantastic Four.

Following the cancellation of his ongoing, Nova was largely quiet throughout Marvel in the 1980s. Starting in 1990 Richie made a return with a new team of teen superheros in the style of DC’s Teen Titans, the New Warriors. You’ll find the essential beginnings for the team here. This omnibus also includes the “Kings of Pain” crossover event that ran through Marvel annual issues of New Warriors and additional titles including Uncanny X-Men and New Mutants.

Personally, I do not enjoy this Guardians of the Galaxy story arc, and would recommend most avoid, but technically these Original Sin tie-ins call back to Thanos Imperative and the fate of Richard Rider.

Heroically Support Comic Book Herald!

If you like Comic Book Herald, and are able to donate, any small contribution will help keep CBH alive and full of new comics guides and content. Donate here! Or, support CBH on Patreon for exclusive rewards! Thank you for reading!

About Dave

Dave is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Comic Book Herald, and also the Boss of assigning himself fancy titles. He's a long-time comic book fan, and can be seen most evenings in Batman pajama pants. Contact Dave @comicbookherald on Twitter or via email at dave@comicbookherald.com.

Reader Interactions

Comments

I’m a newcomer to comics in general, so I need some help. At the beginning of Nova Volume 2 (2014) it skips ahead one month and says that Nova met the Avengers and was invited to join them by Thor. Is this in comic form anywhere, or is it just background information?